Senior Associate Athletics Director/Compliance, Academics & Student-Athlete Welfare Services at the University of Hartford.

After obtaining my Bachelor of Arts degree (2006) in history and classical studies from Indiana University, I decided to pursue my dream of being a college basketball coach. My first college basketball coaching job was at Western New Mexico University where in addition to gaining experience as a college basketball coach, I completed my Master of Arts degree (2008) in Educational Leadership. After leaving Western New Mexico I served as a men’s basketball coach at Dartmouth College and Florida Gulf Coast University before becoming an assistant coach at Chicago State University. I was an assistant coach for eight years at Chicago State, and during the final two years I served in a dual role as Associate Athletic Director for Compliance.

While working at Chicago State I completed my Doctorate in Educational Leadership, with my dissertation focusing on determining the best leadership style and behaviors for athletic coaches to practice. From my dissertation research, I realized that coaches of all levels of sports were being asked to take on increased leadership responsibilities for their athletes and team without sufficient opportunities to receive leadership education and training. My research also uncovered that a significant gap existed between the leadership style and behaviors that athletic coaches thought they were practicing and the leadership style and behaviors they were actually practicing. These findings were the inspiration for my book, “Lead Like A Pro” where I help inform coaches about leadership practice and teach them how to align their perceived and actual leadership styles and behaviors, allowing them to become more intentional and affective leaders. After leaving Chicago State, I transitioned full-time into athletics administration and became the Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance at the University of Northern Colorado. Most recently, I was appointed the Senior Associate Athletic Director for Compliance, Academics, and Student-Athlete Welfare Services at the University of Hartford.